The Tree House
by Ponipop
Summary: Starling gets caught in a storm, causing her to seek shelter in an old empty Tree House in the woods... Next Generation Oneshot, includes Sparchess :)


**Hi! I decided to write a short story about Starling, she is Sparrow's and Duchess' daughter. This story is based on Next Top Villain, where it's revealed that Sparrow lives in a tree house inside the woods. I'm not a native english speaker, so please excuse grammar mistakes, I really tried my best, but I probably still made mistakes.**

 **Anyway I hope you enjoy this story, let me know what you think in the reviews or pm me, i would very much appreciate it :)**

* * *

Starling's shoes sank into the damp earth, leaving behind footprints that soon filled with rainwater. She quickly ran through the forest, while the rain beat against her face relentlessly. The path she followed was only a muddy, barely visible trail by now.

She finally paused to catch her breath and leaned against a fir tree as she wiped the raindrops from her cheeks. She was drenched from head to toe and her clothes laid flat against her body. "ACHOO!" A loud sneeze suddenly escaped her. ' _Great_. _Now I have a cold, too.'_ She sniffed and winced as she heard thunder in the distance.

Just about ten minutes ago, she had been lazily strolling through the bushwood of the Enchanted Forest. The sky had been clear the whole day long, when suddenly within minutes a dark cloud crept over the sky and quickly cloaked everything under its dark ceiling. A heavy cloudburst soon followed that caught Starling unawares.

„ACHOO!" She sneezed again. _Yikes_. Starling pulled back her drenched green hood, that had covered her braided hair, which was now a frizzy mess. Looking up into the treetops that tossed in the wind – her eyes suddenly spotted something.

At the top of two massive fir trees perched a tree house!

It was probably the most extrodinary tree house she had ever seen. It had been built from all kinds of materials – old doors and windows, leftover sidings of barns and cabins. There even was a hull from an old boat. Starling blinked to make sure she didn't just envision it, but it was still there, right above her head.

' _Who built this?'_ She wondered as she stepped closer and spotted a long ladder hidden behind thick bushes and branches, which on closer examination led all the way up to a small trap door, which was set into the ground of the tree house. Gripped by curiosity Starling began to climb the mossy wodden ladder. She had to be careful as some of the steps were rotten and even missing.

Starling knew her parents would never allow her to sneak into some stranger's tree house, but she decided she was not going to tell them about this, as she could take a walk through forest whenever she wanted and she feared that that might ruin it.

Once at the top she turned her head. Looking down at the green forest floor beneath her, she realized that the tree house was set very high. Someone who'd suffer from vertigo definitely couldn't climb up here without fainting. But luckily, Starling didn't mind heights. Even in this cloudy weather she could see the small houses of Bookend Village from this viewpoint. She saw the Red Heels Dance Studio, where her Mom worked as a Ballet teacher and the Glass Slipper where Starling had got a new pair of fableous Dance shoes just yesteray for the upcoming Ball this semester. In the distance she could make out the misty silouhette of Ever After High. Ever After High was a boarding school in the land of Ever After. Starling was a student there herself and currenly in her second year. When her parents still attended the school it's students population consisted of the children of fairy tales, whom the school prepared for their destiny to take their parents' roles within the stories. But now it wasn't quite about that anymore.

A strong gust of wind suddenly shook Starling's delicate frame that almost made her lose her footing. Panicking, she clutched the wet steps on the ladder even thighter with her hand. She really had no intention to fall into the abyss beneath her and end her life so soon. The strom definitely was becoming stronger per minute and Starling knew she had to take shelter soon.

Hastily she knocked at the wooden hatch and eavesdropped against the door, but nothing inside the tree house seemed to move. Without further ado she heaved the heavy hatch by herself, needing all of her strength to move it. It slowly creaked open and fell with a thud to the other side on the ground. Dust swirled up and a musty damp smell reached her nostrils. Starling wrinkled her nose. This place had probably not been visited by anyone for ages.

"Hello, is anybody there?" she called into the opening. When no one answered, Starling carefully crawled through the hatch and closed it behind her.

It was suddenly very silent. Her heart was pounding fast as she looked around and was only met by darkness. The sound of rain lashing against the tree house and the wind whistling through the cracks of old rotten wood, send a cold shiver down her spine and Starling suddenly regretted coming up here.

 _'C'mon don't be a chicken.'_ Starling thought to herself. Then she took a a deep breath and carefully felt her way along the wall. She let out a relieved sigh when she immeadiately found a small switch, which she quickly turned on.

A small bulb lit, which hung loosely from the ceiling and covered everything around her in a dim light. Blinking, Starling looked around and a small gasp let loose from her lips.

The tree house was even larger than it appeared from the outside. Posters of various rock bands and rock stars decorated the inner walls of the treehouse, which Starling fell in love with immediately. Two faded and patched beanbag chairs and an old red couch appeared right before her. At the end of the room she noticed a bed with black sheets and even a small kitchen. The room also had several small windows, some of them had cracks in it and rainwater was sipping through. The intertior was kind of shabby and the furniture was old but it somehow had a charm to it which Starling liked.

She quickly got rid of her muddy shoes and wet cape and exhausted let herself sink into the couch, which definitely needed some stuffing, but she was grateful she no longer had to wander outside during the storm. She quickly dug her mirror phone out of her pocket and groaned when it didn't show her any bars.

"And what am I gonna do now?" Starling muttered and checked her watch. It was almost seven o'clock. She had to be at her dorm at eight, but if the storm wouldn't stop she probably had to spend the night here while no one knew where she was. Besides she didn't feel like getting another scolding from Momma Bear, because she wasn't in her dorm room after curfew.

She sighed and as she let her gaze wander through the room again, her eyes stopped at a bookshelf that was stuffed with odds and ends. She hadn't noticed it before as it was partiatlly hidden behind one of the chairs. She got up from the couch and walked across the faded rug towards it, the old planks creaking under her bare feet. She inspected the things that were clogging up there curiously.

Besides old magazines and comic books, a book with a dark green and golden binding attracted her interest. She delicately picked it up and blew the thick layer of dust away. Her eyes widened in surprise. _\- Diary -_ The title on the bookcover was written in beautiful golden letters.

Starling bit her lip and quickly looked to her right and then to her left, as if making sure no one was watching her, before her fingers slowly flipped the book open. She had to quint her eyes in order to read the scrawly handwriting on the first page.

* * *

 _Hey 'sup Diary? It's Sparrow Hood, rockingest guy ever after and future rock star in the land. I know, I know writing diaries is not something rocking guys like me usually do, whatever after. Mom gave you to me as a birthday gift cuz she thinks I need to 'compensate my feelings' or something like that. I'd honestly rather have an amp for my guitar. But I guess you can't have the nice things when you're gonna be the next Robin Hood._

 _Sparrow Hood_

* * *

Starling audibly asped. Her eyes stared at the page in front of her while her mind began spinning as she tried to understand what she just had read. She looked at the signiture again. _Sparrow Hood._

Could this be real? She flipped further through the book. There was more writing on the following pages, and everything was signed with the same name.

Suddenly Starling stopped at a page, her hazel eyes intently scanned a picture that depicted a young man with ginger hair, which was covered by a green fedora. A complacent smile placed on the boy's lips while his gloved fingers strummed a green guitar.

Starling snapped for air now. No, there was no doubt. This boy on the picture was her father! His style already reflected his rocker influence through and through, though his arms and hands weren't covered with tattoos yet. A wide grin spread across Starling's face. This tree house had probably been her father's all along. It all made sense now. From the rocker inspiried decor to the soda cans that were piling up to the ceiling.

' _But why has he never told me about this place?_ ' She thought as she came across more photos that showed her father and his bandmates.

Then her eyes stopped at a picture of a young couple that was smiling at her. Her dad, now seemingly older, had his arm placed around a beautiful young woman with black hair, which had lavender and white highlights in it.

* * *

 _Yo Diary,_ _Today I asked Swan to attend my next gig, that's tomorrow night and she said yes, which kinda surpised me, but it takes a lot more to throw Sparrow Hood off guard..._

 _Sparrow Hood_

* * *

Starling snorted. Seemed like her dad had been kind of a jerk in High School, but she couldn't help and smile as her fingers ran over the faded picture of her parents. She couldn't remember ever seeing pictures of them as teenagers before.

She was startled in her thoughts as a glim of sunlight dazzled her. She looked outside of one of the little windows and noticed that it had stopped raining and the heavy clouds were quickly leaving the sky. The light of sunset glimmered through the fences inside the tree house now. Checkig her watch, it showed her that is was seven thierty. If she made a sprint she could probably make it in time to her dorm room before curfew.

She closed the book and quickly pulled over her cape and shoes that still were soppy from the rain. Before opening the hatch of the tree house, she paused and looked back again. Her eyes fixated on the book that she had left behind on the table. Carefully she put it under her arm and at the same time she realized, that this probably wouldn't be the last time she would come here.

Finally Starling quickly made her way through the hatch and once at the bottom, she took a sprint through the mossy green woods towards the school. She had to make sure she was in her dorm room at eight to not get into trouble with Momma Bear again afterall.


End file.
